RiverWalk Finalist for ULI 2012 Urban Open Space Award

RIVERWALK FINALIST FOR ULI 2012 URBAN OPEN SPACE AWARD

Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC) is pleased to announce RiverWalk as a top 5 finalist for the 2012 Urban Land Institute (ULI) Urban Open Space Award. The awards recognize outstanding examples of well-used public spaces that have spurred regeneration and the transformation of the surrounding community. RiverWalk is the sole Canadian finalist and holds esteemed company with projects including: The Highline Park (NYC); Pier 25 at Tribeca Section of Hudson River Park (NYC); Railroad Park (Alabama); and Tanner Springs Park (Oregon).

“We are proud to be in the company of these outstanding examples of public open space development from across North America”, says Michael Brown, CMLC president & CEO. “RiverWalk was designed to be both a journey and a destination; creating a gathering place for Calgarians unlike anywhere else in the city”.

The finalists were selected from a collection of entries from across North America and selection was based on project design and how each transformed its surrounding area. In less than two years since RiverWalk phase I and II opened, more than $650 million of private mixed-use investment is slated for development on lands adjacent to RiverWalk promenade and plaza.

“These finalists are powerful examples of the importance of creating great public urban space to augment the quality of life of a community’s residents,” said jury chairman Randall K. Rowe, chairman of Green Courte Partners, LLC, Lake Forest, Illinois. “They also highlight, from a purely economic perspective, how investments in well conceptualized and executed public space can create a multiplier effect for the value of surrounding private property.”

RiverWalk was designed by local firm Stantec Consulting Ltd., who has played a significant role in the project including leading the Master Plan process in 2008.

Phase I opened in November 2010 and was followed by Phase II in September 2011. The pathway now spans 1 km along the banks of the Bow River from Centre Street Bridge to the historic Simmons Building in East Village. Phase 3 is under construction and scheduled to open this fall, providing a connection along the Bow River around Fort Calgary and south along the Elbow River to 9th Avenue SE.

Once completed RiverWalk will stretch 4 km to Lindsay Park and will connect to the 700 km of existing pathway systems in the city.